Here's What Child Actors from Popular Horror Movies Through the Years Are Doing Now

Creepy children are an integral part to almost every horror film. But what did those tricycle-riding, nightgown-wearing, expressionless children that gave us shivers down our spines in our favorite scary movies end up doing after filming wrapped? Find out now—just in time for your annual movie marathon for Halloween!

Patty McCormack terrified moviegoers in 1956 with her portrayal of Rhoda Penmark, a child serial killer and psychopath who's served as inspiration for children in scary movies ever since.

The actress is still best known for her role in The Bad Seed, but her career in television and film has been peppered with other impressive works, like The Master, Frost/Nixon, and The Sopranos.

Martin Stephens was only 11 years old when he played David Zellaby and led his fellow demon children on a murdering spree through their quaint town in the 1960 film Village of the Damned.

The former child actor had a few more roles on British television before retiring from acting for good. Nowadays, Martin works as an architect and lives in the UK — although he still turns up for Village of the Damned reunions.

Pamela Franklin made her acting debut in The Innocents in 1961 as the the well-minded Flora whose governess Miss Giddens (played by Deborah Kerr) begins to think spirits are possessing Flora and her brother.

After her breakout role, Pamela worked on numerous projects, including The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and the 1970s hit show The Six Million Dollar Man. After she gave birth to her two sons, Pamela left the spotlight behind and maintains an extremely low profile. One of her last projects was Fantasy Island in 1979 (left).

Billy was the only local to be asked to appear in John Boorman's 1972 thriller about a group of boys who go on a back country canoeing trip on the Cahulawassee River.

After making his debut at the age of 16 by chance, Billy has gone on to appear in three more films over the years, including Big Fish in 2003 and most recently Outrage: Born in Terror in 2009.

Out of 600 applicants, 13-year-old Linda Blair nabbed the role of Regan in the now-iconic 1973 film The Exorcist, and was nominated for an Academy Award for her performance.

Linda reprised her role in Exorcist II: The Heretic in 1977, became a sex symbol after appearing in Roller Boogie in 1979, and has continued acting in independent films and roles for TV since, including a recent part in Supernatural on the CW.

The British actor was only six years old when he took on the role of the devil child, Damien Thorn, in this 1976 film. His demonic performance paid off as he was awarded a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his work.

After Harvey's breakout role, he appeared in a few more films, including The Omen remake. In recent years, the former actor ran into legal trouble in his town of Kent, England, when he attacked two cyclists in a bout of road rage. He was sentenced to 14 months jail time along with suspension, rehabilitation, and compensation for the assaults.

Brooke Shields made her film debut in the 1976 slasher film, Alice, Sweet Alice, in which she dies at the hand of her suspected sister, Alice. The film was initially banned in the UK for it's violence, but has accumulated a cult following over the years and is considered one of the great slasher films.

The former child star, whose stardom took off even more after her second film Pretty Baby, has built a diverse career since her slasher days. Between modeling for Calvin Klein, starring in the 1980 hit film, Blue Lagoon, and maintaining an impressive television career, Brooke has proven she can do it all.

Heather O'Rourke shot to fame as the adorable little girl whose family was being haunted by paranormal forces in Poltergeist in 1982. Her famous line "They're here" remains heavily relevant in the zeitgeist, even today.

After the young actress' role in the 1982 classic horror film, Heather landed a reoccurring role on Happy Days and had numerous other television appearances. Sadly, Heather passed away after going into cardiac arrest from septic shock at the age of 12.

Drew Barrymore followed up her role as the adorable younger sister, Gertie, in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial with an extremely different character in Firestarter. In the 1984 film, Drew played a child with pyrokinetic powers who sets people on fire.

Drew has since lit the movie world on fire (pun intended) with roles in films like Never Been Kissed, Charlie's Angels, and 50 First Dates. throughout her 30-year career. Today, the actress is just as busy with her film career as she is with her beauty company, Flower Beauty, and raising her two daughters.

Miko Hughes was one of the busiest child actors in the early 1990s, starting his career with a horrifying portrayal of a zombie toddler in Pet Sematary.

As a child actor, Miko worked on everything from Mercury Rising to Kindergarten Cop to Full House. Today, he's still acting and most recently starred in the upcoming film, The Untold Story.

After his success with Home Alone and My Girl, Macaulay Culkin was at the peak of his career when The Good Son was released in 1993. The psychological drama about a normal boy who, after a series of events, reveals his inherently evil core to his visiting cousin, was a major departure from the lovable characters he normally played.

Macauley Culin was the biggest child actor in the '90s. He took a hiatus from the industry after his parent's divorce in 1994 and ended up suing for emancipation at the age of 16. Although the actor retired from the industry in 2016, he reprised his famous character, Kevin McCallister, for a Google commercial this year.

Haley Joel Osment had been working as a child actor for quite some time before he delivered his iconic line, "I see dead people," in this 1999 film.

From his first role in Forrest Gump, Haley has appeared in some of cinema's greatest films. Most recently, the former child star starred in Netflix's Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.

Daveigh Chase starred as the terrifying little girl in 2002's The Ring, who appeared in a video that, if watched, would result in the viewer dying seven days after viewing.

Today, the actress is almost unrecognizable without her long black hair. Daveigh went on to star on Big Love and lent her voice to Disney's Lilo & Stitch. The former child star faced some difficulty following multiple arrests between 2017 and 2018 for drug possession among other issues.

Dakota Fanning gave us all goosebumps with her chilling performance as Emily in Hide and Seek. All we can say is, we see now.

All grown up, Dakota recently appeared in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. She also has three new films in the works.

Isabelle Fuhrman's first major film role was as Esther in the 2009 film, Orphan, in which a couple adopt a little girl who's not as innocent as she seems. Her role quickly became as iconic as it was frightening.

Isabelle has since enjoyed a successful career that has included appearances in The Hunger Games as Clove and a reoccurring guest role on Masters of Sex.

Jodelle Ferland portrayed a seemingly perfect and innocent child under the care of a social worker (Reneé Zellweger) in this suspenseful 2009 thriller.

Since then, the actress has made a career out of horror and dark drama films, having appeared in The Tall Man, The Twilight Saga, and The Cabin in the Woods.

After appearing in his first film, War of the Worlds, Ty Simpkins jumped into the horror genre by playing Dalton Lambert in Insidious. Ty's character's parents fight to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatose son.

Ty has been consistently working in TV and film since. In addition to appearing in both the second and third Insidious films, the actor has landed roles in Jurassic World, Iron Man 3, and Avengers: Endgame.

Jackson Robert Scott starred as Georgie, the lovable little boy preyed on by an evil clown in the 2017 version of It.

So it hasn't been long since Jackson made his big screen debut, but since then the young actor has been busy. Jackson's starred in the sequel to It, as well as The Prodigy, another horror film currently in post-production.